Paul McCartney's 1964 demo of "World Without Love."

Presented by Peter Asher — the Peter of Peter and Gordon who had the hit single version of the song — who is playing it as part of the shows he's doing these days:



Peter was the brother of Jane Asher, who famously dated Paul McCartney at the height of Beatlemania. The Lennon-McCartney songs recorded by Peter and Gordon — "A World Without Love," "Nobody I Know," "I Don't Want To See You Again," "Woman" — were written by Paul.

What about "I Go to Pieces"? That was a nice Peter and Gordon song. It was written by Del Shannon, who also wrote "Hats Off to Larry" and "Runaway," and who committed suicide in 1990. Peter's Gordon — Gordon Trueman Riviere Waller — died of a heart attack in 2009.



Peter does his Austin Powers imitation at 2:33.

"Please lock me away, and don't allow the day, here inside, where I hide with my loneliness."

"I don't care what they say, I won't stay in a world without love."

And the truth is — with or without love — none of us can stay in this world forever.



Goodbye to Gordon Waller, the Gordon of Peter and Gordon.

Gordon Trueman Riviere Waller was born in Braemar, Scotland, on June 4, 1945. He attended the Westminster School in London, where he met Mr. Asher. Of the two, Mr. Waller had the greater interest in rock ’n’ roll at first, and he converted Mr. Asher from “a snooty jazz fan to a true rock ’n’ roll believer as well,” Mr. Asher said in a statement.

The boys got guitars and were soon violating the school’s 9 p.m. curfew by sneaking out to play in coffeehouses and nightclubs. That involved climbing a 12-foot-high, spike-topped wall. They were originally known as Gordon and Peter.

“I am just a harmony guy and Gordon was the heart and soul of our duo,” Mr. Asher wrote....

IN THE COMMENTS: MamaM wrote:

Time travel via internet...hearing them brought me back to the young girl who used to listen to that song and dream of finding the One Lonely Locked Away Man who would rather die than live without her love.

When she found him, he turned out to be an addict, so she got the lonely and locked away part right, while learning the first of many lessons in co-dependent attachment.

Sad but good memories, unexpectedly unwrapped by death, a blog, a link, and a song.